Articles tagged: Charles Oakley

The BIG3 basketball league has given former New York Knicks fan favorite Charles Oakley another chance to play competitive basketball, but the 53-year-old does not believe that same opportunity should be afforded to Lamar Odom.

“I don’t like him like that,” Oakley said. “In life, sometimes you only get but one chance. He’s had three or four chances. He can play, he’s a talented guy. I’m just saying … I don’t want him on my team.”

Odom, 37, has said in the past that he would like to resurrect his basketball career. A previous report from TMZ indicated he has a legitimate chance at joining the BIG3, though league founder Ice Cube sounded skeptical in some recent remarks he made.

Oakley will have his assault charges dismissed if he serves a six-month probationary period and a one-year ban from MSG. It’s no surprise that he isn’t worried about being banned from Knicks games for the time being, as he still has not smoothed things over with team owner James Dolan. Oakley’s attorney hinted recently that the 53-year-old may file a lawsuit against Dolan.

Charles Oakley accepted a plea deal in court on Friday that cleared him of assault charges stemming from an incident with Madison Square Garden security, but he is once again banned from attending events at the arena for the time being.

According to ESPN’s Ian Begley, Oakley has agreed to a probationary period of six months in addition to a one-year ban from Madison Square Garden.

Charles Oakley accepted a deal in court today that essentially clears him of charges as long as he stays out of trouble for 6 months.

Oakley was ejected from a Knicks game in February when security confronted him for allegedly heckling Dolan. The 53-year-old got into a physical altercation with MSG security guards, and he later accused them of racism.

The incident ended up being a public relations nightmare for the Knicks, as fans took Oakley’s side for voicing some of their own frustrations with the team. It wasn’t long before a report indicated Oakley’s ban had been lifted, but the former fan favorite has made it clear he wants nothing to do with Dolan.

“He’s wrong for that. You can’t do that,” said Oakley. “Not being two years in the league and you’ve been on the team two years and won 32 and 31 games. I mean, you don’t do that. Especially when you’re in town [at the same time the meeting was supposed to take place]. You don’t do that. That’s wrong.”

“[Porzingis] should tell [Jackson] himself, ‘That’s why you got a mouth,’” he continued. “All they can do is trade you or keep you. But you got to realize that you have an opinion too. You can’t worry about what they will do. But all you can do is tell them to respect you. When they disrespect you, you have a right to say something to them. If you disrespect them, they have a right to say something to you. You can’t be sensitive. It’s a two-way street.”

The Knicks are almost certainly going to part ways with Carmelo Anthony this summer, and one person who knows a thing or two about playing in New York believes that will be a blessing for the aging superstar.

“I think he’s got a lot left. I think he just needs to get out of New York,” Oakley said. “… He just needs a change. This city, there’s just so much going on with management. He deserves better, but you’ve got to speak up for yourself.”

Of course, Oakley’s opinion is extremely biased. That “management” that he speaks of is the same group that infamously kicked him out of a game at Madison Square Garden back in February, and Oakley said recently that he is still not over his issues with Knicks owner James Dolan.

That doesn’t mean he’s wrong about Anthony. Phil Jackson clearly wants Anthony gone, and the Knicks are nowhere close to giving Carmelo a shot to win his first NBA championship. Oakley mentioned two other teams that could be.

“I think he needs to go somewhere to a team that’s on the bubble or a team that needs a scorer like OKC or the Clippers,” Oakley said. “There’s a lot of teams that could use him.”

Oakley has been charged with three counts of assault for his treatment of security guards at MSG on Feb. 8. Oakley was kicked out of the game for acting belligerently and believes Dolan targeted him. The physical altercation between Oakley and the security guards resulted in major headlines and created a further divide between Dolan and Knicks fans, with many taking Oakley’s side.

Oakley wanted Dolan to be reprimanded for the incident. He wanted the owner “to apologize to the press, to my family and the fans, and the league. He needs to apologize to the other owners, too. He should have been suspended or fined . . . I told the commissioner that’s what I wanted and I’m going to stick to that.”

Rodman got attention on Wednesday for his comments about LeBron James resting. Speaking with CBS Sports’ Bill Reiter, Rodman said James fell short in comparison to Michael Jordan, who never rested.

“You know what, LeBron’s doing one thing that I always said that Michael Jordan never did,” Rodman said. “He never rested. He played every game. He played every game. LeBron has the position to do this now because they need him. The league needs him that’s why he’s doing all this crazy s— now like bitching and complaining and all this [BS].”

Rodman was also critical of today’s NBA, saying it’s easy to score and put up triple-doubles. He’s a former teammate of MJ on the Chicago Bulls, so his loyalty to his former mate makes sense.

Maybe it’s easier to not take days off when you spend entire seasons away from the sport to retire.